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Annexe : 273 Extracts from the “Tattvārthādhigama-sūtra"
The “Tattvārthādhigama-sūtra” or “Tattvārtha-sutra”, written by Umāsvāti or Umásvāmi, approximately during the first century A.D, is regarded as the Jain “Bible". Acknowledged by the two major sections of Jainism, it is a perfect summary, in ten great chapters, of their tenets. Here are mentioned some important “sūtra” of this book. The first number corresponds to the chapter it is extracted from, the second to its place in the chapter.
1.1. Right vision, right knowledge and right conduct are the path to
liberation.
2.11. The worldly souls fall into two groups: souls that possess a
mind and souls that do not. 2.12. The worldly souls are further classified as mobile and immobile
beings. 2.13. The earth-bodied, water-bodied, fire-bodied, air bodied and
plant-bodied are immobile beings.
2.14. The souls with two and more senses are mobile beings. 3.1 The infernal beings live in seven lands, one below the other
(with each lower land having a wider base than the above). From top to bottom these lands have more and more dark
colours. 4.1. The gods (celestial beings) fall into four classes: mansion
dwelling, forest, luminous and empyrean. 4.27. In the heaven “Vijaya” (Victory) the gods have only two more
births as humans before attaining liberation.
5.21. Souls render service to one another. 5.27. An atom is produced by disintegration.
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